France

2013

New York, December 10, 2013--The Committee to Protect
Journalists is alarmed by reports a Malian website based in Paris has been
threatened by Mali's government after posting an Associated Press (AP) story today
implicating Malian soldiers in extrajudicial killings.

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New York, November 4, 2013--The
Committee to Protect Journalists today calls on Malian and French authorities
to conduct an efficient investigation into the killings of two French
journalists on Saturday and ensure the killers are brought to justice.

New York, October 9, 2013--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns
the abduction of two French journalists in Syria and calls on all sides of the
conflict to stop targeting the press. Nicolas Hénin, who regularly reports for French news magazine Le
Point and Franco-German TV channel Arte, and Pierre Torres, a photographer covering local
elections, were abducted by an unidentified group in Raqqa on June 22, the
French Foreign Ministry said today in a statement.

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New York, June 7, 2013--Two French
journalists covering the Syrian conflicthave been reported missing by
their employer, according to news reports. The news comes amid reports that two
other international journalists missing in Syria since April are alive.

After five years of tension between the media and Élysée Palace under Nicolas Sarkozy, a new Socialist government sought to cool down the atmosphere. President François Hollande promised to review his predecessor’s policies on public broadcasting and to give up the presidential privilege of directly appointing its executives. The judiciary brought good news for the press: A judge dismissed a criminal case against Augustin Scalbert, a Rue89 journalist indicted in June 2010 on charges of “stealing and keeping” a video that showed Sarkozy scolding France 3 journalists. And prosecutor Philippe Courroye was indicted on charges of unlawfully trying to identify the sources used by Le Monde journalists investigating the Bettencourt affair, the questionable funding of Sarkozy’s party by billionaire Liliane Bettencourt. But a number of media outlets faced new lawsuits claiming defamation or insult (Mediapart, Libération), and endangerment of life or incitement to hatred (Charlie Hebdo). Several French journalists were also victims of violence: Gilles Jacquier and Rémi Ochlik were killed and Edith Bouvier was wounded in Syria, while Roméo Langlois was abducted in Colombia.